


An Uninvited Guest

by DoritoDork



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Bill haunts Dipper's house, College student Dipper, Dipper is socially awkward, Human bill, M/M, Platonic Relationship, ghost Bill, not sure how I'd do anything intimate with a ghost character yet, older dipper
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-25
Updated: 2015-12-06
Packaged: 2018-04-28 03:57:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,821
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5076886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoritoDork/pseuds/DoritoDork
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bill Cipher was accused of witchcraft and hanged in 1848 in the newly established town of Gravity Falls. Dipper Pines lives in the present and has recently come to this sleepy town in search of a home near his college, preferring to be alone he buys a house on the outskirts of town. Little did he know that his choice was not between having a roommate or not but rather- having a roommate alive or not.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Came up with this idea while visiting Salem the other day.

_Faster. Keep running. Do you want to end up like your mother?_

His legs were sore. His lungs burned. And his adrenaline was slowly seeping from his body. Over the pounding of his ears he heard the mob yelling.

Underbrush hit his face like whips as he sprinted through the forest, bruises starting to form on his body and cuts from thorns and branches zigzagged over his legs and arms.

_I’m slowing down. This is it._

He could feel his body start to shut down, his vision began to blur and blacken at its edges. He tripped. The ground flew towards him and gravity felt as though it were flipping. Head hitting painfully on a rock, the last thing he remembered before being pulled into the sweet abyss of sleep was people gathering around him with disgusted faces.

 

* * *

 

 

He woke from dreamless sleep to the feeling of his head bobbing as he was carried carelessly, almost like unwanted cargo. Then came the throbbing pain in his head. Groaning, he reached a hand to his forehead but it was immediately smacked away by someone outside of his line of vision. As it fell away he was able to catch a glance of his hand- _is that blood?_

The ride surely wasn’t comfortable. Blinking, he tried to make out the shapes around him. He was draped over a large man’s shoulder, surrounded by people, while their face were obscured he could feel their glares. Every once in awhile he would receive a blow to his head, each time falling in and out of consciousness. The ground below him was becoming flat, they were making their way into town. There was only one place in town for a man like him- the gallows, he just hoped he could prolong his time a little longer.

_Maybe they’ll just take me to jail._

He was wrong.

After choosing to close his eyes for just a little bit he was jolted awake by the feeling of being moved. He opened his eyes to a field, the citizens of Gravity Falls standing before him. No one looked happy. Looking down he realized his hands were bound and he was standing on a wooden platform, it was like a stage and he was the show.

“William Cipher! Or should I call you Bill? It’s great to see you, _friend_.” Said a familiar voice on his right. Immediately, Bill turned to the person only to see the one and only-  
“Gideon Gleeful.”

The shorter man smiled, “Lovely of you to join us today.” Glaring, Bill looked him up and down. He was wearing one of the ugliest baby blue suits Bill had ever seen, his ghostly white hair styled in a perfect bouffant. In his chubby hands was a paper enscrawled in beautiful cursive handwriting, he caught his name before Gideon turned to the crowd, “Citizens of Gravity Falls, I welcome you for coming, for today is the day we execute William Cipher.” Many people spat on the ground at the mention of his name, “You see fellow citizens, the apple doesn’t fall from the tree. Much like his mother, Mr. Cipher here has taken part in witchcraft.” This was already common knowledge as no one looked surprised. “While our town has been plagued with horrible nightmares, losing days of sleep, this man appears to be perfectly fine.” He failed to mention that he too, had been sleeping perfectly fine. “After chasing him from his mansion and into the woods the nightmares suddenly stopped! Coincidence? Quite the contrary. All evidence points to Cipher. Now it’s impossible to control dreams without a little help- dark magic. Gravity Falls, do we dare allow a witch to live among us?”

Completely in sync the crowd yelled “No!”

Usually Bill would be furious with the accusation but honestly, it was true. Well half-true. Plus he was too exhausted from running around the woods for the past three days. Bill’s glare never wavered though and neither did this stop him from muttering, “I’m not the only one who took part in this. You should be hanging with me, Gleeful. Ah, but you’d do anything to keep yourself alive, isn’t that right you selfish little brat?” He said this calmly but his eyes burned with malice.

At first Gideon was slightly nervous, Bill Cipher was known as someone to never anger. He had seen the man’s wrath. But looking down as his bonds he realized that the tables have turned, Bill was practically kneeling helplessly before him. Pride washed over him and he sneered at the blonde, “Shut up, Witch, you’re being quite a hypocrite.” With a simple wave of this hand a man standing on Bill’s left grabbed the noose that Bill had just realized was hanging behind him.

_So this is it, huh? Pathetic._

“Any last words, Cipher?” Gideon asked while the loop of the rope was being dropped over his head.

Nodding, Bill turning to the crowd, his glare full of hatred, “Trust no one.” And at the the floor dropped below him. The rope around his neck tightened to a suffocating level, his air was cut off. He tried his best not to struggle, knowing it would making things worse but his body continued involuntarily jerking. After an excruciating ten seconds his vision finally started to fade to black and sweet unconsciousness took over.

It took a full six minutes for his body to reach death.


	2. Finding a Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two twins take a road trip to a strange town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my gosh this got a lot of attention quick. Let me first of all just say thanks! Second of all I'll try to update on Sundays, this certainly isn't set in stone per say but it will definitely help me to write faster, I've actually been trying to put this chapter together all day since I was too busy yesterday- Hope you all had a great Halloween by the way! So without further ado, enjoy!

Dipper Pines couldn’t believe he was finally going to college. The years feel as though they flew by, already 21 and pursuing a career with a major in English. While he didn’t get into his dream school, he quickly learned that he would prefer attending somewhere smaller and more focused on the individuality of the students. After discovering a college that fit this description that resided in a small town called Gravity Falls, Dipper decided this was where he would go. Sending in an application, he quickly received an acceptant and immediately told his best friend, and twin, Mabel.

“You’re going to Oregon?!”

“Relax, Mabel I-”

“Without me?!”

“But the school is-”

“Dipper! I thought we were going to go to school together?”

“Yeah but we’re both interested in different-”

“Where would I go?”

Knowing he’d probably be cut off again, he decided to just sigh and not reply. This appeared to be a bad decision because now he could feel his sister’s glare burning into him. Meeting her glare with the most forlorn look he could muster, the younger twin let out another sigh, “Mabel, you know I’d never _leave you_ leave you, I’ll just be going to college for a bit, getting my degree, and hopefully become a writer. I’d keep in touch and hey, you can go for fashion design like you always talk about. Mabes, you need to start sending out some applications, you’ve waited long enough.”

Now it was Mabel’s turn to look downcast. She had been waiting to send out any applications, knowing she and Dipper couldn’t get into the same school with such different career choices. She just didn’t want to face that fact. However, she didn’t understand one thing: “Why Oregon though? You’ve lived in California your entire life and suddenly you just want to go somewhere completely different?”

That caught Dipper off guard; he honestly just wanted to try something different, get away from the big city, and maybe gain some inspiration. So that’s exactly what he told his sister.

Raising an eyebrow, she just stared at him. “That’s it?” When Dipper nodded, her serious facade completely broke and she let out one of her Mabel-snorts and broke into a fit of laughter. “Dipper, you frickin dork!” She said between giggles. Looking up at her seemingly surprised brother she pulled him down by the collar and gave him a noogie, “Love ya lil’ bro.”

Quite taken aback by his twin’s change in demeanor, Dipper was not expecting that. While he was the younger twin, he was much taller than his sister- at least five or six inches, but that certainly didn’t stop his sister’s ‘little’ remarks. “Love ya too, sis.” He replied, rolling his eyes and chuckling. Pulling himself from his sister’s grip, Dipper smiled at her and suggested, “How about we go on a road trip?”

Eyes lit up and a grin spread across her face, Mabel squealed. “Really? Definitely! Where to, where to?”

“Well, I was planning on buying a place to stay while I’m there. Who’s the best at finding the perfect place? None other than Mabel Pines! Plus, we can take a detour and just have some sibling bonding time.” Worried his sister would change her mind, Dipper lowered his gaze and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. However, to his surprise, she yelped that she’ll go pack her things and ran out of the room. Turning to his own room to go pack his things, Dipper felt lightheaded from the excitement.

 

* * *

 

The road trip was great. Between staying in cold, rundown motels that smelled like musk to eating fresh baked breakfasts at small, local cafes - at Mabel’s assistance of course - the twins had a ton of bonding time. They would talk about ideas for Dipper’s book, arguing between making it romance or mystery. Mabel would discuss new clothing designs, and how well sweaters and glittery accessories matched. The two even brainstormed about college choices for Mabel.

When they arrived at Gravity Falls, both were very surprised to find how different the place was from their normal lifestyle. The town was extremely small and secluded, how the place had its own college, Dipper had no idea. Why he chose the college in the first place, Dipper had an even harder time comprehending.

After finding a motel to stay at for the next few days and proceeding to check in and drop off their luggage, they set off to the college campus. Nathaniel College to be exact. Mabel found the name funny for some reason. It was actually a lot nicer than one would think after seeing the town. Located right next to Gravity Falls Lake and surrounded by forest, Dipper found the place...serene. He loved it. Mabel on the other hand, well... she found it frustratingly quiet. While the building wasn’t extremely large, it was certainly big. The twins noticed it was probably the biggest building in town- asides from a mansion located on the outskirts of town.

One thing the twins weren’t used to was walking down the street and randomly being greeted by a complete stranger. This happened very often as the citizens seemed to rarely have out-of-towners. People would walk up to them and shake their hands, asking their names and where they were from. The two quickly learned that the people of Gravity Falls were both very polite and had absolutely no understanding of personal space.

On their second day in Gravity Falls, they decided it was high time they looked at some houses. Usually Dipper would just look for a simple apartment but apparently those don't exist in the small town. It also seemed that there were little to no houses for sale in the town. After contacting a realtor by the name of Tad Strange, they traveled around town looking at the few houses that were actually up for sale. All of them were either too expensive or just barely meeting Dipper’s living requirements and Mabel’s design requirements.

“Say...You’re coming here for college, right? Why don’t you just stay at the dorms provided by the school?” Tad asked after their fourth house inspection.

Scrunching his nose at the concept of sharing a room with a complete stranger, Dipper just shook his head. “No, I prefer living alone. I’ve lived with my sister my whole life and can’t imagine living with anyone else.” Looking at the house list that Tad carried with him, he saw that there were a very limited amount of options left. “Although... from the looks of it, I might just have to stay at the school.”

“He’s also not very good as socializing.” Mabel added with a giggle.

“Isn’t that practically every young adult and teenager these days?” Tad asked with a wink, earning a proud nod from Mabel in return. Turning back to Dipper he said, “There is one place left to look at. It is quite big for one person but it’s within your budget.” After the twins agreed to check it out, they climbed into their cars and drove off to the final house.

 

* * *

 

 

The house was very secluded from town, located on the end of a long dirt road and resembling more a large shack than a house. With a long and triangular roof, large windows, a worn down structure, it sat on a large field and was surrounded by thick forest. The interior was huge, rooms everywhere! Dipper couldn’t even decide what he’d do with so much extra space. The place was in great need of some touch ups, though. Some of the wood was rotting, windows were cracked, and there were a few obvious leaks here and there. “I like it,” Dipper said after their tour.

Mabel gawked at him, “Dipper! This place is so far from town and old, not to mention creepy!”

“I like it far from town, and it just needs some touch ups.” Grinning down at his sister he added, “Plus I can handle creepy.”

“I don’t know, bro-bro…” Mabel mumbled, rubbing her arm.

Putting an arm around his sister’s shoulder to reassure her, the taller twin turned to his realtor who had been patiently waiting for them to make a decision. He was also eating a slice a of bread. How the man got it, Dipper had no idea- nor did he want to know. “I, uh... I decided to get it, I’ll need to make some touch ups though.”

“Fabulous! I’m sure Manly Dan and his family would be more than willing to take care of that last part. Pleasure doing business with you, Mr. Pines. Please, contact me if you need anything.” Tad said, extending a hand for Dipper and Mabel to shake, which they did with a smile.

And with that, they left the house, blissfully unaware of the pair of eyes that had been watching them the entire time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any comments/suggestions are highly appreciated!


	3. Moving Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's moving day and Dipper's life is about to get a little more interesting...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me first say I am so sorry for the long update wait, I've been very busy and have recently bought undertale so that's been consuming my life also... I can't say I'll be sure to update every week but I'll try. Please enjoy :^)

It had been fifteen years since the last person resided in the old house. Bill, the spirit residing in the house, took a sick pleasure in driving the old resident insane until they packed their bags and left without looking back. The spirit was more than surprised to hear someone actually agreed to buy the house. Bill had watched three people enter the house, one he was familiar with. Tad Strange. The man had been trying to sell the house for years, but most people found the place too secluded, old, or sometimes they could simply sense Bill’s presence and left with their tails between their legs. But no, this time someone actually agreed to buying it, he almost seemed completely oblivious. Hilarious! The man seemed like your typical twenty-year-old, at least he thought so. It’s hard keeping track of what’s ‘hip’ these days. There was also a woman with him; she looked about the same age and possibly even related to him. She definitely noticed that something was off about the house; fortunately, it seemed the man would be the one buying the place and would be living alone.

 

Bill couldn’t wait.

  
  
  
  


The house was ready to be moved into with a month to spare until school started. The twins were busy packing Dipper’s things. It had been a few weeks since their road trip and their strong bond had reformed since. On the way back from Gravity Falls, the two took a detour to some larger cities. They had even stopped at a few colleges for Mabel, all of which she didn’t seem entirely enthusiastic about. There was one city she really enjoyed though: Portland. While Dipper couldn’t see himself living there, it certainly seemed like a-Mabel-kind-of-town. With the familiarity of the city along with acres upon acres of parks, Dipper thought what really got his sister was the cleanliness of the city; people biking or walking to their destinations. Energy conservation, and the name, “Greenest City in America,” Mabel had looked like she was in love.

 

“I have something to tell you,” Mabel said as she and Dipper were folding some of his clothes.

 

“What is it, sis?” Dipper asked, looking up and quirking an eyebrow. He feared Mabel was going to dampen his going away with a piece of terrible news.

 

Instead he sister’s face broke into a grin. “I started sending out those college applications!”

 

Dipper felt his heart skip in happiness and excitement for his sister. “Mabel, that’s great! Where-”

 

“ACHOO!” Mabel’s loud sneeze interrupted him.

 

“Gesundheit. So as I was asking, where did you send them?”

 

His sister sniffled. “Danke.” She smiled and simply wagged a finger in his face at the question. “Nuh-uh-uh Dipdop, it’s a surprise!”

 

The younger twin frowned. “Seriously, Mabel?” But his sister’s only response was a nod and a thumbs up before the two went back to packing his suitcase. 

  
  
  


Moving day was a hastle. The moving truck was late, Dipper overslept, and Mabel had woken up sick. The later was immediately Dipper’s main priority to attend to- Mabel, of course, thought otherwise.

 

“Dipstick, please. I’m fine. Go help the moving guys.” Mabel’s voice was nasally and she sniffed every once in awhile. She was currently sitting on the couch wrapped up in a blanket and sipping some chamomile tea. Originally, she wanted to help load the truck but Dipper wouldn't hear any of it and insisted she lay down for a bit.

 

“Are you feeling alright?” Dipper fixed her blanket. “Are you warm? Do you want more tea? I could-”

 

“ _ Dipper! _ ” He flinched at Mabel’s annoyed voice. “Seriously, take a chill pill. It’s just a cold.”

 

Sighing and taking off his hat, Dipper ran a hand through his hair. “Right. Right, yeah sorry. Just stressed. I’ll go finish loading the boxes.” He quickly put his hat back on and went to his room. His room was where he was keeping all his packed boxes, Mabel didn’t want random boxes all over the house. While he was mother hen-ing Mabel the moving guys were able to get most of the boxes, only three were left sitting in the corner. It was strange seeing his room so bare; no furniture, no pictures on the wall, no curtains surrounding the window, no rug on the floor… The house will be so empty with only one person living there, then again, look at the house he’s moving into. But, Mabel isn’t like Dipper. She likes being around people, she likes making them laugh and cooking for them, she likes doing arts and crafts friday nights when she gets home from work. “Relax, Dipper. She’ll be fine, she’s going to school soon anyways.” He muttered to himself. 

 

“Um, Mr. Pines, would you like me to get those or do you have them?” 

 

Dipper was startled out of his thoughts by the man standing in the doorway. It was one of the moving guys and he was gesturing to the boxes sitting in the corner. How long had he been standing there? “Oh, um, yeah I got ‘em.” The man nodded and told Dipper they’ll be leaving as soon as those last boxes are loaded. Humming to himself to calm his nerves, the brunette stacked the boxes and carefully balanced them in his arms. After bringing them outside the men put the boxes in their truck and set off. 

 

Once the truck has disappeared past the horizon, Dipper made his way back inside. Mabel was still on the couch and was knitting a new sweater, she looked up and smiled when Dipper walked in. “So the truck just left?” The male twin nodded and sat next to his sister, draping an arm across her shoulder. She leaned into his chest. “So you’re leaving?”

 

Dipper nodded again, “Yeah, don’t wanna keep them waiting.”  While this was true, he certainly was in no rush to leave.

 

The older twin wrapped her arms around her brother, “I’m gonna miss you, doofus.”

 

Dipper returned the gesture and kissed her head, “I’m gonna miss you too, dork. I’ll call you as soon as I get there. And we can skype every single night once I get the internet set up.

 

After sneezing Mabel giggled, “You better.”

 

The two sat there for fifteen more minutes, simply talking and finishing their goodbyes. Then Dipper got up and took one more look around the house before waving to his sister and climbed into his car, leaving behind the life he always knew.

  
  


Seven boring hours, five pit stops, and three large coffees later, Dipper arrived in Gravity Falls. The small town looked exactly the same as the last time he had been there. Somehow the moving guys were there already and had already unloaded the truck. They had taken the courtesy to bring all the boxes inside and carefully putting them in the barren living room while waiting for Dipper. As the brunette pulled his car into the driveway he also noticed another car parked in front of the house, he recognized it as Tad’s. Said man was just stepping out of his car and waved to Dipper as he parked.

 

Stepping out of the car and stretching his half-asleep limbs, Dipper strode over to Tad and shook his hand.”How was the drive Mr. Pines?” The man asked, nodding to the other.

 

Dipper just shrugged, “I can't say it was a cup of tea, it sure feels good to stand though.”

 

Tad offered a polite smile and nodded, “Yes, of course, it was quite a drive. Well I thought I’d meet you here to make sure you arrived safely and if you needed anything, do you need any help unpacking?”

 

Dipper raised a hand and shook his head, “No thanks, I think I’ve got it. I’ll need something to keep myself busy until I have internet and cable.”

 

Tad nodded again, he was being polite but didn’t seem exactly enthusiastic with the idea of unpacking. “Oh right about that, you should have that set up within the next three days, is that alright?”

 

“Yep!” Dipper said smiling, “As long as it’s set up within a few days I should survive.”

  
Tad chuckled at that, “Alright, I’ll let you send those men off and get unpacking. You have my number, call me if you need anything.” He strode back to his car and climbed in, waving to Dipper before pulling out of the driveway. Dipper returned the gesture and walked over to the moving men and thanking them before they left too. He spent a moment simply admiring his new home and then went inside to begin unpacking. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOAH A BILL POV? I hope y'all are ready for more of those ;)


End file.
